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Bill Gross is best known for his bond market prognostications over the years. But he\’s nearly as well known for the funny, inane, and often downright bizarre opening anecdotes that preceded his commentary.

In retrospect, the fact that his most recent monthly investment letter at Pimco didn\’t include his trademark introduction could perhaps be taken as a sign that something was up. In honor of Gross\’s departure from Pimco to work at Janus Capital, which he announced Friday, here\’s a round-up of some of the wackiest anecdotes from his monthly investment letters in recent years (you can read all of them here).

Benchmark U.S. rates marked an astounding fall for much of the year, which no doubt helped give an extra boost to equities. But investors woke up from their summer naps to see yields had come off their lows. Since the 10-year Treasury note
yield hit its 2014 low of 2.35% at the end of August, it\’s up over 20 basis points at 2.57%.

Market participants have their eyes squarely on next week\’s U.S. Federal Reserve policy meeting, and expectations that the central bank could change the language it uses to signal the timing of rate hikes are growing.

Most expect the Fed\’s near-zero interest rates to begin rising around the middle of next year, but much still depends on the economy. Investors, for their part, have more benign expectations for the timing and pace of rate hikes than Fed officials. But that may mean a more severe reaction from investors if and when the Fed does eventually change its language.

School is back in session, which means it\’s time for an investing lesson from bond market specialist Jeffrey Gundlach.

The DoubleLine Capital founder and CEO delivers one of his regular market outlook webcasts on Tuesday at 4:15 p.m. Eastern. He\’ll give a rundown of his take on the economy, markets, and the best investing opportunities.

4:14 pm (EDT)

Welcome

Ben Eisen

Hi there -- we are just about to get started with Jeffrey Gundlach's webcast. In the meantime, here are a few things to look out for

The European Central Bank’s decision to adopt stimulus measures marks “the beginning of the end of the bond market rally, said David Tepper, co-founder of Appaloosa Management LP, during an interview with Bloomberg Thursday.

The ECB opted to cut rates and begin a regimen of quantitative easing, surprising markets during its press conference Thursday morning.

Bond investors who are trying to figure out where to take their talents — or investment choices — would do well looking to NBA star LeBron James, according to Michael Lewitt at The Credit Strategist.

To much fanfare, James is returning to his home state of Ohio to play for the Cleveland Cavaliers next season. But it\’s not his choice of teams that makes him such a good role model for bond investors — it\’s the contract he signed, according to Lewitt.

Exchange-traded funds are a popular way for investors to gain exposure to the often illiquid market for lower-quality corporate bonds. But some of them look vulnerable as that sector pulls back, said analysts at Ned Davis Research Group.

Yields have been rising and prices falling for a few weeks now on indexes that track baskets of junk bonds. That prompted investors to pull a chunky $1.7 billion out of high yield mutual funds and ETFs last week, the most since last August. ETFs accounted for $1.06 billion of those withdrawals, according to data from Lipper.

Morningstar delivered a \”not ratable\” classification to Jeffrey Gundlach\’s flagship DoubleLine Total Return Bond Fund on Wednesday, the latest twist in a long-running disagreement between the fund manager and the investment research firm.

The fund
is among the most highly-watched in the bond market because of the strong returns posted in its first few years, its fast growth and Gundlach\’s own high profile. He hasn\’t been shy about expressing his displeasure with the way Morningstar rates his fund.

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